Peggy Clark Papers
Catalog Record: http://lccn.loc.gov/2006560742
General International Standard for Archival Description
Music Division Library of Congress Washington, D.C.
Finding aid encoded by Library of Congress Music Division, 2012
Encoded Archival Description
Encoded Archival Description (EAD) Version 2002
collection
Peggy Clark Papers 1880-1997 1936-1970
Clark, Peggy
Biographical History for: Peggy Clark Papers 1880-1997 1936-1970
Biographical Note Date Event 1915, Sept. 30 Born Margaret Bronson Clark, Baltimore, Md. 1935, July 5 A.B., Smith College, Northampton, Mass. 1938 M.F.A., Yale University, New Haven, Conn. Broadway debut as costume designer for The Girl from Wyoming Joined United Scenic Artists Local 829 1944 Worked with set designer Oliver Smith for the first time on On the Town 1947 Lighting designer and technical director for Lerner and Loewe's Brigadoon 1949-1951 Collaborated with Oliver Smith on Gentlemen Prefer Blondes 1951-1954 Worked with George Abbott on several shows, including Paint Your Wagon, Pal Joey, and Wonderful Town 1958 Collaborated with Oliver Smith on Flower Drum Song 1960, Jan. 28 Married Lloyd R. Kelley (died 1972) 1960 Collaborated with Oliver Smith on The Unsinkable Molly Brown 1967 Taught lighting design at Smith College 1968 Elected first female president of United Scenic Artists, Local 829 1969 Taught lighting design at Smith College 1969-1970 Taught lighting design at Yale University 1996, June 18 Died, Lexington, Ga.
Scope and Content Note The Peggy Clark Papers span the period 1880-1997 with the bulk of the materials dating from 1936-1970. Contents include light plots, scenic renderings, blueprints, correspondence, published and unpublished writings, programs, photographs, posters, scripts, scrapbooks, clippings, notes, audio cassettes, and memorabilia. The Project Files series forms an all-encompassing assemblage of materials that chronicles Clark's career as an amateur and professional designer of theatrical lighting, scenery, and costume. It is subdivided into four subseries. The first, "Stage Productions" contains an alphabetical and dated list of Broadway musicals, plays, revues, and dance recitals. Materials for each title are thematically arranged (lighting, contracts, props, etc.) within storage containers to mirror the organization of Clark's original production notebooks. These can and often do include oversized lighting plots, scenic renderings, posters, and costume sketches. Many also contain setting and costume fabric swatches, photographic negatives, and delicate drawings and sketches in a variety of artistic mediums: pencil, ink, charcoal, acrylic, and watercolor. The types and quantities of materials available for a given title varies considerably depending on Clark's degree of involvement with that production. Lighting and setting materials represent the most voluminous components of the notebooks. These consist principally of rolled plots and diazotype reproductions, blueprints, cue sheets, sketches, equipment specifications, and notes. Clark's close working relationship with set designer Oliver Smith is clearly evident in these materials, many of which feature holograph drawings in Smith's hand or Clark's drawings of prominent Smith designs. Correspondence included under the titled productions represents only those documents originally found with the production notebooks. Researchers are encouraged to examine the general Correspondence series for additional correspondence of possible relevance. Individual titles may also include any of the following: clippings, contracts, black and white or color photographs, general production notes (schedules, expenses, etc.), programs and invitations, and annotated and unannotated scripts. The "Industrial Productions" subseries consists almost exclusively of lighting projects done for private American manufacturers, special interest groups, or the U.S. government. Materials are arranged by corporate name and mirror the internal structure of the stage production files. Of particular interest are Clark's files for the Weirton Steel Co. Labor Day pageants from 1942-1944, a series of festivals celebrating the achievements of the American home front and the armed forces. "Theater Specifications" is a subseries of individual and composite drawings of prominent performing arts venues throughout the United States. The "Miscellaneous Projects" subseries rounds up an assortment of relatively small-scale lighting and design projects from various points in Clark's career. Highlights include materials for the Stage Door Canteen radio show and the opening of the Tomb of the Unknown in Washington, D.C. The Writings series is comprised of over thirty typescript articles, plays, journals, scenarios, illustrated works, a novel, and other literary pieces that document Clark's professional and private interests in the theater. The most substantial of her unpublished personal works are the novel Midwife to a Turkey (1939) and her tirelessly re-worked musical Over the Fence (1964). Dodo's Dream Boat (1965) and Gremlins on the Home Front (1944) are exercises in illustration and political activism respectively, while The Summer I Smelled Paris (1958) provides a somewhat surreal example of her unique narrative style. The Correspondence series contains chronologically arranged letters to and from family members, friends, and colleagues. Eleanor Linton Clark, Lloyd R. Kelley, and friend Vicky Glaser are frequent correspondents. Many of these letters, by virtue of the recipient's personal interests, contain references to current theatrical productions and upcoming tours. Peggy Clark's life-long fondness for her summers at Woods Hole, Mass. permeates much of this writing and contextualizes the longer literary works, paintings, and photographs that exhibit similar themes. The series also contains scattered correspondence from Oliver Smith, Edwin Lester, and other prominent figures in American theater. The Organizational Materials series consists of correspondence, meeting minutes, promotional materials, and other content related to Clark's associations with professional technical theater organizations, most notably the United States Institute for Theatre Technology, and United Scenic Artists. The remaining series form a veritable collage of Clark's personal and professional life. The Photographs series contains a chronological run of portraits, as well as images of the Clark family and its beloved French bulldogs. The Drawings series contains an eclectic mix of Clark's non-theatrical drawings, including sketches and paintings created mainly for graduate school assignments. In addition, there are childhood drawings, sketchbooks of Woods Hole scenery, and a humorous series of original Christmas cards. Scrapbooks in the collection consist of several bound volumes of photographs, clippings, programs, and memorabilia related to events at Smith College. A small series of Biographical Materials contains resumés and clippings about Clark and her professional activities, as well as documents related to family history. The final Miscellany series contains an assortment of union stamps and other items associated with theater production.
series
Project Files, 1932-1982
Technical and artistic drawings, notes, correspondence, photographs, programs, and other materials related to theatrical projects, most of which involved some element of lighting, scenic, and/or costume design by Clark. The term "production notebook" denotes materials formerly arranged in three-ring binders by production title. These notebooks may include any of the following materials: correspondence, programs, clippings, photographs, scripts, fabric samples, cue sheets, lighting plots, scenic renderings, blueprints, production notes, contracts, financial documents, among others. "Oversize (rolled)" indicates the presence of larger technical drawings, usually blueprints, diazotypes, or renderings on tracing paper. "Oversize (flat)" often denotes the presence of scenic or costume renderings, but it may also represent other items that have been unfolded or re-housed in such a way that requires flat storage. Researchers are encouraged to examine the production notebooks first before seeking oversize materials, as folded reproductions of technical drawings are often contained within them. Certain types of photographic negatives and slides are restricted due to their unique format considerations. These may be made available only with prior joint approval from the Music Division and Preservation Directorate.
subseries
Stage Productions, 1936-1982
file
Production notebook
Oversize (rolled)
Oversize (flat)
Color photographs
Color slides and negatives [RESTRICTED]
Actors Equity Anniversary Show (1963)
Agnes de Mille Dance Theater (1953)
Poster
Ah, wilderness (1959)
Alfred the Average see That's the ticket
All you need is one good break (1950)
Along Fifth Avenue (1948)
The amazing Adele (1955-1956)
Negatives [RESTRICTED]
America, be seated (1964)
Annie get your gun (1957)
Annie get your gun (1957 or 1958)
Annie get your gun (1958)
ANTA album (1949-1951)
Arabian nights (1967)
Around the world in 80 days (1963-1964)
At home with Ethel Waters (1953)
Auntie Mame (1956-1957)
Babes in Toyland (1978-1981)
Backlash (undated)
Script
Bajour (1964)
Color slides [RESTRICTED]
The ballad of Baby Doc (1958)
Ballet Theatre (1949-1951)
Ballet Theatre (1952)
Ballet Theatre: Fall river legend (1949)
Ballet Theatre: On stage (1945)
Ballroom (1979)
Barrabas (1971)
The barber of Seville (1940)
Barefoot at Canossa (1950)
Beggar's holiday (1946-1947)
Bells are ringing (1956)
Ben Franklin in Paris (1964)
The best laid plans (1966)
Bill Baird's Alice in Wonderland (1975)
Bill Baird's Bandwagon (1973)
Bill Baird's Once upon a dragon (1977)
Bill Baird's The people is the thing (1967)
Bill Baird's Pinocchio (1973)
Bill Baird's The whistling wizard (1973)
Bill Baird's Winnie the Pooh (1974)
Billion dollar baby (1945)
Billion dollar baby (1951)
Billy Barnes revue (1959)
Bless you all (1950)
Bon voyage (undated)
Bonanza bound (1947)
Bonaventure (1950) / The high ground (1951)
Le bourgeois gentilhomme (1937, Yale)
Brigadoon (1946-1947)
Brigadoon (1948)
Brigadoon (1954)
Brigadoon (1957)
Brigadoon (1963-1964)
Brigadoon (1967)
Brigadoon (undated)
Bull fight (1954)
The burning glass (1954)
Bye bye Birdie (1960-1961)
Candide (1971)
The Canterbury tales (1980)
The cardinal (1936, Yale)
The carefree heart (1957)
Carnival in Flanders (1953)
Carousel (1953-1954)
Carousel (1957)
Carousel (1958)
Carousel (1963)
Carousel (1973)
Carousel (undated)
Color slides
Cheri (1959)
A Christmas carol (1979)
City Center Gala Showcase (1963)
Cleopatra (undated)
Commedia dell arte (1937, Yale)
The common man (undated)
Connecticut Yankee (1943)
Copacobana (1950)
Coronation (1937, Yale)
Counterattack (1943)
The country girl (1966)
Courtin' time (undated)
The criminals (undated)
The crucible (1969)
The cry of the peacock (1950)
Curtain going up (1952)
Daniel Nagrin / Donald McKayle recital (1951)
Dark of the moon (1945)
Darling of the day see Married alive / Darling of the day
Davy Jones' locker (1976)
The desert song (1980-1981)
Destry rides again (1959)
Devils galore (1945)
A distant bell (1959)
The divine comedy (1938, Yale)
Dumas and son (1967)
Color slides and photographs
Eugenia (1957)
The eye of the needle (1955)
Finian's rainbow (1967)
Flight into China (1939)
The flower drum song (1958)
The fortune teller (1980)
Gabrielle (1941)
Gentlemen prefer blondes (1949-1951)
Posters
Gift of gold (1936, Yale)
The girl from Wyoming (1938)
The girl who came to supper (1963)
The glass menagerie (1956)
Glorious morning (1938)
God give us Gertrude (1938, Yale)
Goodbye Charlie (1959)
The Grand Duchess of Geralstein (1978)
The great big doorstep (1942)
The great conspiracy against Russia (1946)
The great waltz (1965)
Green Mansion Theatre (1938)
Guys and dolls (1958)
Guys and dolls (1961)
Guys and dolls (1965-1966)
H. B. Playrights Foundation (1968)
The haunted house (1938, Yale)
Here come the clowns (1938, Yale)
High button shoes (1947-1948)
Negatives
The high ground see Bonaventure / The high ground
HMS Pinafore (1979)
HMS Pinafore (1982)
The honourable historie of Friar Bacon and Friar Bungay (1937, Yale)
Hotel Passionato (undated)
How the other half loves (1971)
How to succeed in business without really trying (1962)
How to succeed in business without really trying (1966)
I'd rather be right (undated)
The immortal husband (1955)
In the Summer house (1953)
Innocent voyage (1943)
International Festival of Dance (1957)
An international incident (1940)
Its all yours (1942)
Je t'aime, Jessica (undated)
Jimmy (1969)
Johnny Johnson (1941)
Jollyanna (1952)
The juniper tree (1968)
Juno (1959)
The king and I (1963)
The king and I (1972)
King Lear (1950)
Kismet (1953-1955)
Kismet (1962)
Kiss me, Kate (1955)
Kiss me, Kate (1964)
Kiss me, Kate (1965)
Kiss me, Kate (undated)
Laffing room only (1944)
Lamp at midnight (1947)
Last of the red hot lovers (1969)
Last of the red hot lovers (1970)
Legend (undated)
Look, Ma, I'm dancin'! (1948)
Love in parentheses (1937, Yale)
Love life (1948)
Love on leave (1944)
Maggie (1953)
Mardi Gras (1966)
Married alive (1967) / Darling of the Day (1967-1968)
Martha (1961)
Mary, Mary (1961-1962)
The master builder (1938, Yale)
Medea (1947)
The medium (1946)
The members of the wedding (1976)
The merry widow (1957)
The merry widow (1961)
The merry widow (1976)
The merry widow (1980)
The merry widow (1982)
The merry widow (undated)
Mexican hayride (1943)
Misalliance (undated)
Miscellany, 1930s-1970s
Production notebook materials
Chiefly graduate school drawings
Miss Liberty (1949)
Mlle. Modeste (1978)
The most happy hella (1966)
Mousetrap (1976)
Mr. Wonderful (1956)
Musical chairs (1980)
Musical Theatre Cavalcade (1970)
My fair lady (1956)
My fair lady (1961)
My fair lady (1962)
My fair lady (1966)
My fair lady (1969)
Natural affection (undated)
Naughty Marietta (undated)
New faces of 1956 (1956)
New Jersey Theatre Festival (1939)
New York City Center Showcase (1957)
New York City Center Showcase (1958)
A night in Venice (1982)
No time for sergeants (1955)
Nude with violin (1957)
The nutcracker (1966-1967)
Of thee I sing (1952)
Oh glorious tintinnabulation (undated)
Oklahoma (1958)
Oklahoma (1959)
Oklahoma (1963)
Oklahoma (1965)
On the town (1944-1945)
On your toes (1954)
The ordeal of Richard Feverel (1937, Yale)
Paint your wagon (1951)
The pajama game (1957)
Pal Joey (1951-1952)
Pal Joey (1961)
Pal Joey (1963)
Paradise bazaar (undated)
Paradise Island (1961-1962)
The passion of Dracula (1980)
Patience (undated)
Peer Gynt (undated, Yale)
Penelope (1942)
The Penzance Players (1936-1937)
Peter and the wolf (1969)
Peter Pan (1954)
Peter Pan (1955)
The pirates of Penzance (1979)
Plain and fancy (1954-1955)
A play in three acts (undated)
Poor Richard (1964)
The potting shed (1957)
Queen Anne (1937, Yale)
Ramshackle inn (1943)
The rape of Lucretia (1948)
The red mill (1981)
Richard III (1935, Yale)
The righteous are bold (1955)
River journal (1975)
Romulus (1962)
Rosalinda (1956)
Rosalinda (1968)
The rose tattoo (1966)
Sadko (1938)
Sail away (1961)
Say, darling (1958)
The seagull (undated)
The second Mrs. Tanqueray (1950)
The sergeant was a lady (undated)
She stoops to conquer (1960)
Show boat (1967)
Showgirl (1961)
The silk purse (undated)
The skin of our teeth (1975)
So this is Brooklyn (undated)
The song of Norway (1952)
The song of Norway (1962)
The song of Norway (1952 or 1962)
The sound of music (1967)
The sound of music (1970-1971)
The sound of music (undated)
South Pacific (1957)
South Pacific (1961)
South Pacific (1965)
South Pacific (1968-1969)
Souvenirs (undated)
St. Louis woman (undated)
Stage for action (1944)
The student prince (1966)
The student prince (1976-1977)
Susannah (1958)
Tamiris-Nagrin Dance Company (1960)
Taste of honey (1960)
The tender land (1954)
That's the ticket (1948)
The three penny opera (1954)
Three times the Chinatree (undated)
Tickets please (1950)
The time of the Barracudas (1963)
Topaze (1947)
Touch and go (1949)
A tree grows in Brooklyn (1950)
The trial of Euripedes (1935, Yale)
The trip to bountiful (1953)
The twilight bar (1946)
Uncle Harry (1937-1938)
Uncle Harry (1942)
Under the yum-yum tree (1960)
The unsinkable Molly Brown (1960)
Utopia Limited (1937, Yale)
Utopia Limited (1977)
La vide breve / El amor brujo (1957)
The Vikings at Helgeland (1937)
A voice from another season (1969)
Walk into my parlor (1942)
Where's Charley? (1966)
Will success spoil Rock Hunter? (1955)
Wonderful town (1953)
Wonderful town (1958)
Wonderful town (1963)
Wonderful town (1967)
Wonderful town (undated)
Wurthering heights (1939)
Ziegfeld follies of 1956 (1956)
Unidentified
Industrial Productions, 1942-1963
American Federation of Labor Women’s International Exposition of Arts and Industry (1942)
American Federation of Labor Women’s International Exposition of Arts and Industry (1943)
Crosley show (1951)
Defense industries on parade (1941)
Fashion show (1948)
General Motors motorama (1958)
The mighty voice of Chevrolet (1963)
Miss America pageant (1954)
Mutual Benefit Life Insurance Co. 100th anniversary (1941)
Oldsmobile show (1956)
Philadelphia fashion show (1950)
Singer press party (1951)
Weirton Steel Co. Labor Day pageant (1942)
Weirton Steel Co. Labor Day pageant (1943)
Weirton Steel Co. Labor Day pageant (1944)
Glass slides [RESTRICTED]
Theater Specifications, 1932-1975
44th St. Theatre, New York (1944)
Folded floor plan
Anta Theatre, New York (undated)
Central Park Summer Theatre, New York (1956)
Colgate Theatre (1970)
Oversize floor plan (rolled)
Composite drawing (undated)
Composite drawing (1956)
Music Box, Walnut Theatre, Ethel Barrymore Theatre
Curran Theatre, San Francisco (1957-1963)
John F. Kennedy Center (1968-1971)
Los Angeles Music Center Memorial Pavilion (undated)
Lunt-Fontanne Theatre, New York (undated)
Majestic Theatre, New York (1932)
Metropolitan Opera House, New York (undated)
Miscellany
Folded floor plans and other materials
Pace University (1975)
Philharmonic Auditorium, Los Angeles? (undated)
Shubert Theatre, Boston (1964)
Shubert Theatre, Cincinnati (undated)
Schubert Theatre, New Haven (undated)
St. James Theatre, New York (undated)
Waldorf-Astoria ballroom stage, New York (1936)
Yale University experimental stage (undated)
Zellerbach Theatre (1972)
Miscellaneous Projects, 1936-1977
Boy with a drum (1946)
Project notebook
Carolina Theatre lighting proposal (1977)
Dance recital lighting (circa 1968)
The doorway (undated)
Eddie Fisher at the Wintergarden (1962)
Festival Theatre project (1938-1940)
La Guinguele Restaurant (undated)
It's up to you (1943)
Medieval pageant wagon (1936, Yale)
Name the book please (undated)
Paul Anka at the URIS (1975)
Peacock Inn dance floor designs (1955)
Folded floor plans
Stage Door Canteen (1942-1944)
Story to order (1940)
Tomb of the unknown (1968-1969)
Watercolors of Brooklyn Heights art exhibition (1968)
Woods Hole art exhibition (1972)
YMCA youth united (1943)
Writings, 1928-1976
Articles, journals, plays, scenarios, illustration projects, a novel, and other literary works.
Professional, 1938-1976
"Coordination of the visual elements of play production" (1938)
"Dance tour lighting" (1978)
"Lighting for the theatre" (undated)
"Training the lighting designer" (1976)
"Why we need lighting designers in the theatre" (1950)
Personal, 1928-1959
Children's book illustrations (1945)
Cinderella's big moment (1935)
Civilians and sirens (undated)
Come about (1940)
Cottage City (1959)
Diary (1932)
Dishonesty leads to its own ruin (1943)
Dodo's dream boat (1965)
Dreams in the dust (1940)
Each to his own (1934)
Falmoth Enterprise articles (1935-1936)
Fool's fortunes (undated)
Gremlins on the Homefront (1944)
A guest in the house (undated)
In our midst (1943)
Its own reward (undated)
Jack and the beanstalk (undated)
Journals (1928-1939)
The marionette show (undated)
Midwife to a turkey (1939)
Miscellany (undated)
Over the fence (1964)
Penelope (1940)
Sergeants (undated)
Sing with the sparrows (undated)
Such sweet sorrow (1940)
The summer I smelled Paris (1958)
Tales out of school (1950)
Thumbs up (1935)
Tis of thee (1941)
Too little and too late (1943)
Woods Hole oceanography (1952-1953)
Organizational Materials, 1935-1985
Correspondence, notes, meeting minutes, promotional materials, technical drawings, photographs, and other materials. Includes lighting design exam materials prepared by Clark for the United States Institute for Theatre Technology between 1975 and 1980.
Designers Amalgamated, 1940-1941
General materials
Los Angeles Civic Light Opera Association (LACLOA), 1965-1974
Smith College Alumni Association, 1935, 1959-1985
Stage Door Canteen Executive Committee, 1945
United Scenic Artists, 1944, 1953-1963, 1977-1980
United States Institute for Theatre Technology (USITT), 1975-1980
Correspondence, 1920-1985
Chiefly personal letters to Clark from friends and family members.
1948-1985 and undated
Photographs, 1915-1970s
Portraits, snapshots, slides, negatives and albums, mostly unrelated to theatrical productions. Includes images of the Clark and Kelley families.
P. Clark, alone, 1915, 1941-1972 and undated
Black and white photographs
P. Clark, with others, 1930s-1970s
Clark family, 1950s and undated
Lloyd R. Kelley, 1940s-1950s and undated
Photograph album
Miscellany, 1940s-1960s and undated
Drawings, 1900s-1969
Miscellaneous sketches and paintings unrelated to Clark's theatrical projects. Most are graduate school assignments or unidentified illustrations. Includes several boxes of humorous Christmas cards that Clark designed annually between 1930 and 1969.
Christmas card designs, 1930-1969
Miscellany, circa 1900s-1940s
Scrapbooks, 1933-1940
Several bound volumes of clippings and photographs from Clark's years at Smith College. Contents are related to organizational activities and theatrical projects.
Smith College, 1933-1936
Smith College, 1934
Biographical Materials, 1880-1997
Educational certificates and awards, resumés, datebooks, legal and financial documents, family heirlooms, and other materials.
Awards and diplomas, 1938-1973
Clark family, 1880-1973 and undated
Clippings, 1943-1968, 1997
Datebooks, 1942-1958
Death of Lloyd R. Kelley, 1971-1972
Eleanor Linton Clark journal, 1915-1925
Estate of Eleanor Linton Clark, 1971-1975
Estate of Lloyd R. Kelley, 1970-1974
Legal documents, 1960
Lloyd R. Kelley, 1959
Membership cards, 1938-1989
Miscellany, 1935, 1944, 1953-1954, 1960, 1979, 1997 and undated
Resumés and credits, 1946-1954 and undated
Tax returns, 1941-1963
Thursday Night Young People's Group speech, 1940
Travel journal, circa 1930
Yale University commencement program, 1938
Miscellany, 1976
Annotated books on theatrical lighting, realia, and a poster from puppeteer Bill Baird.
Bill Baird's Early Puppets, UCLA, 1976
Books on theatrical lighting
Realia